Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co. et al. v. Russell

Decided June 27, 1985. John Paul Stevens delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 84-9 · 473 U.S. 134 (1985) · Cited 1,937 times

Holding

Section 409(a) does not provide a cause of action for extra-contractual damages to a beneficiary caused by improper or untimely processing of benefit claims.

The Court’s statement of the holding, from the opinion’s syllabus. The syllabus is prepared by the Reporter of Decisions and is not part of the opinion of the Court — read the official opinion for authority.

How the Justices voted

Decided 9–0.

“Concurring” means agreeing with the outcome; any split shown is the Court’s judgment, not each Justice’s reasoning. Source: the Supreme Court Database (Spaeth et al.), Washington University.

Precedents cited

Supreme Court decisions this opinion relies on, ordered by how often it cites each. Cases in our collection link through; others are named.

• Cort v. Ash · 422 U.S. 66 (1975)
• Northwest Airlines, Inc. v. Transport Workers Union · 451 U.S. 77 (1981)
• National Railroad Passenger Corporation v. National Assn. of Railroad Passengers · 414 U.S. 453 (1974)
• Nachman Corp. v. Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation · 446 U.S. 359 (1980)
• California v. Sierra Club · 451 U.S. 287 (1981)
• Textile Workers v. Lincoln Mills of Ala. · 353 U.S. 448 (1957)
• Touche Ross & Co. v. Redington · 442 U.S. 560 (1979)
• Middlesex County Sewerage Authority v. National Sea Clammers Assn. · 453 U.S. 1 (1981)
• Transamerica Mortgage Advisors, Inc. v. Lewis · 444 U.S. 11 (1979)
• National Society of Professional Engineers v. United States · 435 U.S. 679 (1978)
• Texas Industries, Inc. v. Radcliff Materials, Inc. · 451 U.S. 630 (1981)
• Botany Worsted Mills v. United States · 278 U.S. 282 (1929)
• Texas & Pacific Railway Co. v. Rigsby · 241 U.S. 33 (1916)
• Central States, Southeast & Southwest Areas Pension Fund v. Central Transport, Inc. · 472 U.S. 559 (1985)
• Switchmen's Union v. National Mediation Board · 320 U.S. 297 (1943)
• Jarecki v. G. D. Searle & Co. · 367 U.S. 303 (1961)
• National Labor Relations Board v. Amax Coal Co. · 453 U.S. 322 (1981)
• Federal Maritime Commission v. Seatrain Lines, Inc. · 411 U.S. 726 (1973)
• Nashville Milk Co. v. Carnation Co. · 355 U.S. 373 (1958)

Cited by

Later Supreme Court opinions in our collection that cite this case.

• Varity Corp. v. Howe · 516 U.S. 489 (1996)
• LaRue v. DeWolff, Boberg & Associates, Inc. · 552 U.S. 248 (2008)
• Thole v. U. S. Bank N. A. · 590 U.S. 538 (2020)
• Mertens v. Hewitt Associates · 508 U.S. 248 (1993)
• Rush Prudential HMO, Inc. v. Moran · 536 U.S. 355 (2002)
• Pilot Life Insurance v. Dedeaux · 481 U.S. 41 (1987)
• Aetna Health Inc. v. Davila · 542 U.S. 200 (2004)
• Alexander v. Sandoval · 532 U.S. 275 (2001)
• U.S. Airways, Inc. v. McCutchen · 569 U.S. 88 (2013)
• Firestone Tire & Rubber Co. v. Bruch · 489 U.S. 101 (1989)
• Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance v. Knudson · 534 U.S. 204 (2002)
• MacKey v. Lanier Collection Agency & Service, Inc. · 486 U.S. 825 (1988)
• Ingersoll-Rand Co. v. McClendon · 498 U.S. 133 (1990)
• Franklin v. Gwinnett County Public Schools · 503 U.S. 60 (1992)
• Thompson v. Thompson · 484 U.S. 174 (1988)
• Boggs v. Boggs · 520 U.S. 833 (1997)
• Harris Trust & Savings Bank v. Salomon Smith Barney Inc. · 530 U.S. 238 (2000)
• Conkright v. Frommert · 559 U.S. 506 (2010)
• Negusie v. Holder · 555 U.S. 511 (2009)
• Karahalios v. National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 1263 · 489 U.S. 527 (1989)
• United States v. Jicarilla Apache Nation · 564 U.S. 162 (2011)

Official text

Read the official opinion (U.S. Reports, govinfo.gov)

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Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (1985). Citation count from the Free Law Project’s CourtListener bulk data. Data last verified 2026-07-03. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).